Are the Children Stars of 'Pequeños Gigantes' Being Exploited?

The young stars ofPequeños Gigantes(Little Giants) may be pushed too hard. Rumors are circulating that the kids in the Televisa-produced reality talent competition are not getting paid enough.Rubén Galindo, the producer of the show, rejected the accusations in an interview with Mexican news agency, Notimex.

“The children don’t know exactly how much they’re getting paid. Speak to their parents, who I think don’t have any complaints because they’re still here and happy,” he said. His statement comes before a contestant on the show named Carlos told a reporter that he was being paid only $2,000 pesos each week, which equals $165 U.S.

According to AOL Latino, two mothers of contestants on the show have claimed that their children are feeling burnt out by what they describe as long and draining days of filming.

“Number one, we have days of complete rest where there is no talk of math, Spanish, rehearsals, songs, or music,” Galindo said, adding that the show’s contestants all have tutors to keep them on track academically. The show features 28 children and seven judges with the goal of finding the most gifted child entertainers.

“He [Carlos] could’ve spoken to you about the president of Mexico, in this case he spoke about what he thought was his salary, and that’s fine,” he said. “Nothing is wrong, I’m not worried. We are very calm – the parents too.”

Latina Media Ventures, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Service LLC Associate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, and is also a Linkshare, ShareaSale, and CJ affiliate. Our decisions to feature and recommend products is guided by our editorial decisions.